Baboons

Depending on the choice of classification system, there are currently between 150 and 180 living primate species. Of these, 50-60 primate species, or one-third of the total, occur on the African continent. While these primates are widely distributed, many species occupy well-defined ecological niches covering small geographic areas. These small communities need to be protected. Such conservation could take the form of education programs, national conservation strategies, and more stringent hunting controls. Moreover, greater effort could be directed towards the elimination of poaching activities. These measures, however, require a better understanding of primate needs. Surveys should be conducted to assess the animals' survival status, and perhaps also locate suitable reserve areas (Oates, 1986, pp. 25-26). Certainly it is unrealistic to try and protect large areas of Africa. Instead, realistic conservation objectives must be established. For example, appropriate emphasis should be placed on such things as sustained-yield forest management. Within such managed areas, highly protected sanctuaries could be created. These

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). Conversely, rather than gather together, Guinea baboons disperse for feeding. For the most part, the animals live in multimale groups. During foraging, however, these larger societies break into smaller units that operate independently. In addition to the various grouping behaviors, baboons also possess different mating systems. For example, "savannah" baboon subspecies such as Papio cynocephalus anubis (the olive baboon), Papio cynocephalus cynocephalus (the yellow baboon), and Papio cynocephalus ursinus (the chacma baboon) tend to be highly promiscuous. Within a fairly brief interval of time, males and females will generally mate with every individual of the opposite sex that's available. Thus, during every estrus cycle, each savannah baboon female mates with more than one male. In addition, within a given month, individual males will typically mate with more than one female. Even when male and females do pair, the relationships are rarely, if ever, monogamous. Preferential associations apparently have little influence over savannah baboon mating behaviors (Anderson, 1989, p. 355). The hamadryas and gelada baboons, in contrast, display a markedly different mating system. These animals mate polygynously. The adult
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Papio Theropithecus, Saudi Arabian, Africa Instead, Prosimii Anthropoidea, , Pliocene Papio, Moreover Ransom, Dunbar Dunbar, Animal Behavior, dunbar 1988, Swindler Erwin, schwartz 1986, gelada baboons, dunbar 1988 106, social systems, 1988 106, baboon social, cited dunbar, savannah baboon, female baboons, anderson 1989, cited dunbar 1988, 1986 pp 25-26, 1988 pp 303-304, oates 1986 pp,
Approximate Word count = 3010
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page)

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